The PBR made its return to Madison Square Garden last weekend for their Unleash the Beast tour, and fans gathered from all over the tri-state area to see the worlds best bull riding cowboys. Rodeo’s may not be as popular around here, but after what fans saw throughout the three-day event, it’s clear that we are missing out on one of the more electric sports in the country.
Opening night on Friday had everyone locked in before the cowboys even started riding. Fans were introduced to all the cowboys competing throughout the weekend as each was introduced in dramatic fashion.
In the first part of the night, fans got a taste of how the singles and overall scores in the PBR work as 33 riders looked to deliver under the bright lights in the big city. Not only do the riders get scores, the bulls also are ranked and are scored. The night was ultimately won by Jose Vitor Leme getting a score of 89.75 to lead all riders heading into day two.
The second night showed why bull riders need to have a short memory, as those who were bucked off the first night had a chance to redeem themselves to qualify for day three. The cowboy to lead the way heading into the championship round was none other than New York native, Daylon Swearingen. After nearly winning the first day, Daylon completed another qualifying ride, this time on Velvet Revolver, and shot into the lead with 170.75 total points.
The final day turned out to be the most intense as riders had one last chance to qualify in the top 12 and be a part of the bull draft. The bull draft works as 12 bulls are chosen, one by each rider, rather than assigned like the previous rounds. One of the bulls was the top-ranked “Man Hater” who was picked by Brady Fielder.
Fielder was bucked off as Man Hater’s reputation lived up to the hype as he continues his dominance over riders in the PBR. The story of the day, however, was 31-year-old Lucas Divino out of Brazil, as he put together solid rides all weekend to win it with an 88.75 in the championship round to bring his weekend total to 262.25.
The win netted Divino $45,833.33 for being the top rider of the event and was his 16th event win in his career. Divino is currently ranked 4th in the world rankings for riders.
PBR Teams
One of the newest features of the PBR over the past couple of years has been the PBR Teams season that has turned this individual sport into something much bigger. The Monster Energy Team challenge made its debut as the Florida Freedom took on the New York Mavericks. Yes, you read that correctly, we have a bull riding team in the northeast!
The “Concrete Cowboys” made their debut last year as an expansion team, and started to make some noise at the end of the season. They started the year off by upsetting their rival, Florida, and were led by 22-year-old Mason Taylor. Taylor led the Mavs off with a score of 88.50 to bring the Garden crowd to their feet, and fans remained locked in as John Crimber was Florida’s last hope.
Crimber is the PBR’s top ranked bull rider, making him the best in the world, and he is only 19 years old. It wasn’t meant to be for the Freedom, however, when bull Whiskey Trip was able to get the buck off in 4.59 seconds, giving New York the upset victory.
PBR To Return Later This Year
With the weekend now complete and the PBR headed to Illinois for next weekend’s event, fans will have to watch on either CBS or the league’s YouTube channel if they want to keep up with the Mavericks and the riders.
The Mavs and league will return to New York later this year, with events currently scheduled for the Barclays Center and UBS Arena. If you haven’t already been out to one, definitely try to attend and, like me, you will be hooked. I know I am looking forward to attending and being able to finally say, “This ain’t my first rodeo!”
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